My Top 5...Book Covers

No preamble this time - just enjoy!


1/



Steve Crisp is my favourite cover artist. His paintings are deeply atmospheric, simple in design, but beautifully detailed. Blood Games is my favourite for a few reasons: 1/ I love horror stories and movies set in the wilderness, and this cover evokes all those backwoods movies such as Friday the 13th and Deliverance. And 2/ Blood Games was the book that made me want to read Laymon all those years ago. The synopsis, along with the great cover art sold me that Laymon is my kind of writer.









2/



I know what you're ASSuming - but there's more to love in this Vince Natale cover than the sexy, sensual, billowing curtains...captures the feel of Laymon's wonderful noirish horror/thriller in all its L.A. glory - seedy, sexy, dirty, fast, hot. Yeah, gotta love those curtains...













3/



(This isn't the edition I wanted, but I couldn't find the one I wanted on the web). This terrified me when I was a youngster. My dad had an old '75 Pan paperback and I used to take the book off the book shelf and just stare at the vision of the massive shark roaring up through the water, about to enjoy a bit of afternoon tea. When I finally got old enough to read it (Jaws was one of the first adult books I ever read) I found that the story was just as scary and exciting as the cover - which is the ultimate in primal terror.








4/



Like Jaws, this cover scared the shit outta me when I was young (hell, it still gives me the creeps). Takes the "There's something hiding under the bed" of every kid's nightmares and amps it up. "Hi, Georgie..." *Shudder*





5/




Another Steve Crisp gem. The small picture doesn't do the incredible detail justice. Like all his paintings, it's moody and evokes all sorts of B-grade horror movies from the past (Texas Chainsaw Massacre on water anyone?). Brilliant stuff.












6/



Ok, so I broke the top 5 rule - but this is honestly one of my favourite covers. Keith Minnion captured the Friday the 13th-esque/b-grade slasher mood of my novel perfectly. I couldn't have asked for a better cover: Thanks Keith!

A Poem

Thought I'd share with you guys a poem I wrote when I was in grade 4 or 5 (I was a wee-lad of about ten).

Now, if I remember correctly, the assignment was to choose a picture - any picture - and write a poem inspired by that picture.

Me, being the charming sicko I was (still am, really), trawled through the various horror movie books and found a delicious photo from some movie I have no idea the name of, of a girl sitting in a booth or the back of a car, an axe imbedded in the top of her head, blood flowing down her face, her mouth locked in a final shocking gasp. Very gruesome, very shocking - so very perfect!

Anyway, here's what I wrote all those years ago:

MY POEM by Brett McBean

A young girl age sixteen was sitting in a cafe drinking caffeine,
When suddenly the clouds turned black and in walked a maniac.
He yelled out "Kill" and that made everyone race out with a chill.

He turned around and saw the girl, brought out an axe and was ready to kill.
He walked over then he stopped, by this time he was about to chop.
The axe went down the sky looked dull, the echoed sound of her cracking skull.

He hit her so hard her brain turned to jelly, while it felt like chainsaws cutting in her belly.
Blood trickled down upon her face, across her leg, it felt like mace.
It soon was over and of course she was dead.
The rain was gone, but what a mess.

Copyright Brett McBean 2006

Not exactly Shakespeare, but hey, I'm sure it gave the teacher a good scare!

The Horror...The Horror...

A lot of people (particularly family members, especially grandparents) wonder why I write horror. Why do I want to write about such nasty, gruesome subjects such as psychotic killers, ghosts, death and the occasional nipple chewing (read The Last Motel if you wanna know what that’s about)? Isn’t there enough craziness in the world – why dwell on the negative?

I’ve loved horror – not just writing, but reading and watching films – for about as long as I can remember. Some of my earliest memories have to do with horror: cowering under a table while the family watched Friday the 13th: Part 5 when I was around nine; going to a horror exhibition of classic horror icons such as Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster and the Hunchback of Notre Dame in the Victorian Arts Centre when I was around eight; being terrified of the G’mork whilst watching The NeverEnding Story at the cinema when I was around five.

Among the first books I read were horror – from Midnight at Monster Mansion (a 'Choose Your Own Adventure' book) to Pet Sematary (the very first adult novel I ever read).
I was always drawn to horror movies – some of the earliest films I remember loving were Jaws, Alligator and Poltergeist.

Horror is in my blood, it’s the way it’s always been. I don’t really have a choice (and I wouldn’t have it any other way).

But why am I drawn to the ‘dark side’ so to speak?

And is it such a bad thing? Why do people always associate loving horror with evil and corruption?

It’s my belief that everyone has a dark side. Everyone has violence and the propensity to do evil.
Thankfully, most of us have enough sense and morality to balance that darker nature, and most know enough not to act on those darker urges even if at times we feel like doing so.

But being aware of your darker side isn’t necessarily a bad thing – it’s only by knowing the enemy that we can defeat it. Pretending something doesn’t exist doesn’t make it go away; ignorance isn’t a means of conquering that thing you wish would simply vanish. Just because you acknowledge your dark side, doesn’t automatically mean you’re evil. I know that if someone breaks into my house and wants to do serious harm to my wife, I’m prepared to kill that person if necessary – but does that mean I’m evil? No, I just know I have that protective instinct in me, doesn’t mean I’m going to start acting like Ted Bundy at every spare moment.

Violence and death is a part of life – it’s unavoidable. Wars have been fought (and are still being fought), people do horrible things to one another; history is most definitely stained red, and I can’t see it ever changing.

Writing – or reading, or watching – horror is simply a way of dealing with life. It’s taking something scary and staring it straight in the face. It’s being able to experience something that would normally make you scream or cower with fright within the safety of your living room.

Most people who love horror don’t wish harm on others – they don’t think of life as cheap and get kicks out of seeing someone die. What they do get a kick out of is being scared, of visiting the dark rooms that inhabit all of us and trying to understand this mad, cruel, wild, fun, brutal, beautiful ride we call life.

And by visiting these dark rooms, we often find we’re purged of the violence inside us; it’s by locking it away, throwing away the key and trying to forget where the door was located that can do the most damage. Because, eventually, the monster is going to get restless and come smashing out of its cage.

I love horror because I find exploring the darker side of life stimulating, enlightening and cathartic. It’s a release. Life can be scary, scarier than any novel or movie, and to me, it only makes sense that the best way to combat that fear, is to try and understand what makes people do the things they do; and then, hopefully, things may seem just that little less frightening.

And besides, it’s fun to be scared.

My Top 5...Greatest Singers

I must stress - this is who I think are the greatest singers (from popular music), not necessarily my favourites.

Ok, so let's begin:

1/ Bob Marley - probably a controversial no.1, but let me tell you: there is something in the man's voice that I have never heard (felt) before in anyone else. I really can't explain it other than there is truly something otherworldly about Bob Marley. He's technically great, sure, and can move you emotionally with the simplest of ease. He can evoke pain, joy and every emotion in between with just one word and doesn't have to overblow to achieve it. But, again, I have to say it - there is a quality to Marley's voice that is magical, that hits you in the heart, that is best experienced, rather than analysed.

2/ Eva Cassidy - I only recently discovered the beauty that is Eva Cassidy's voice. If I could only describe her voice in one word it would be: pure. Her singing is totally without pretention, vocal tricks; it's simply beautiful. I don't think I've heard a voice that could be as powerful and ballsy in one song, then achingly delicate in the next. Whether it's heartfelt blues or a sweet ballad, every word she sings is powerful and meaningingful. And listen to her version of 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' and tell me is isn't the most moving performance you've ever heard.

3/ Elvis Presley - more than just gyrating hips and looks that made girls swoon, Elvis the Pelvis had an incredible voice. Soulful, powerful, sexy, evocative - and totally unique. Could belt out a bluesy ballad as easily as he could croon a sultry ballad.

4/ Aretha Franklin - the most powerful female voice of all time? You bet. But she did it wth such ease and without having to burst a blood vessel or using vocal tricks (Idol anyone?). Technically stunning, hugely influential, if you wanna learn how to sing soul properly, study Ms. Franklin - she's the best.

5/ Freddie Mercury - in my mind, the finest pop/rock singer of all time. He had an incredible operatic quality, but fused it with a growling, cheeky rock vocal that could move you with its soul, stun you with its theatrics - and all in the one song, sometimes within the space of a few seconds.

Honourable mentions: Stevie Wonder; Dusty Springfield; Michael Jackson; (and many more that I just can't think of right at the moment...).

The Books Have Arrived!

I am currently holding in my sweaty, quivering hands my author copies of The Mother (due out in August from www.lothian.com.au). It's an exciting time - my first mass-market paperback! Yes, I can now truly call myself a 'paperback writer' :-)

My Top 5...TV Shows

To start things off, I've decided to go with the idiot box.

1/ The Simpsons - It's true, the show is a pale shadow of its former brilliance, which is such a shame. If they had ended at around season five or six, they would've had the greatest show of all time. As it stands, it's still one of the best shows of all time (the first four or five seasons remain, in my mind, the finest thing televsion has ever produced), but the creators should've quite while they were miles ahead (something the Brits know how to do). Still, even with the lesser last few years, The Simpsons is still my favourite show.

2/ Seinfeld - The best American sitcom of all time (or is that anti-sitcom?); among its many incredible and groundbreaking acheivements was the fact that a show about nothing, with four self-absorbed and often very unlikeable main characters, could still manage to be side-splittingly funny and endearing.

3/ Degrassi Junior High/High - If you grew up with the show (like myself, who was only a few years younger than the cast in the show), you'll only have the fondest of memories watching the (sometimes too familiar) dramas of Joey, Caitlin, Spike, Wheels, Snake and the rest of the gang. They're almost like old friends. 'Wake up in the morning...'

4/ Gilmore Girls - The newest show on my list. This is so much more than the simple teen soap-opera it may appear to be - it's funny (funnier than most comedies at the moment), moving (more heartfelt than most current dramas, and a lot less sappy), intelligent, witty, incredibly well-written, marvelously acted, and contains one of the best and most original cast of quirky characters of any show. And it's fun to play 'spot the pop culture references'. Who wouldn't want to live in Stars Hollow?

5/ The Wonder Years - Like Degrassi, this show was instrumental during my formative years. I was moving from primary school into high school when this wonderful show started, so I could relate to Kevin Arnold's many adventures in life, love and family. At turns funny and dramatic, TV shows don't get much better than this.

Honourable mentions: Diff'rent Strokes; Married...With Children; Beverly Hills 90210; The Office (UK version); Freaks & Geeks; Fawlty Towers; Happy Days; South Park; King of the Hill; Curb Your Enthusiasm; Beavis and Butthead.

The Top 5 Of Everything

Staying true to my comment about being a list-a-holic, I've decided to start a series of 'top 5' lists. These will be on anything from movies and books, to food and women (yep, that's right!). They will be a fun little diversion between the bigger entries, so I hope you enjoy them and feel free to post comments either on my choices, or your own.

So, let's get started, shall we...

The Greatest

Not too long ago, a good friend asked me, along with a selection of other horror-type people, this question for an article he was writing: Who is the greatest horror writer?

Well it got me thinking, and though I had it narrowed down to two writers, ultimately, my decision wasn't an overly hard one.

Now, 'greatest' means different things to different people.

For me, it had to satisfy these two critereas:

1/ Good writer. Not best (which to me is not the same as greatest), but still a damn fine writer.

2/ Influence. They had to have had a major, and lasting, impact on the genre.

So for me, there was only one name: Stephen King.

Say what you will about his writing (I admit it can sometimes be bloated, and, as is the case with writers such as King who are extremely prolific, his output is wildly uneven in terms of quality), but at his best, there is scarcely anyone who can touch him. He can tap into our most basic fears with frightening ease and create characters that are rich and more vivid than any other writer I know.
As for his his influence, well, aside from inspiring countless writers over the years, show me anyone who hasn't read at least one King story (horror fan or otherwise) and considering nearly every single word he has written has been adapted for the big - and small - screen at one time, is proof that his work has pervaded popular culture.

So that's my mumber one, but what about all those other great writers of the macabre?

Because I'm a list-a-holic (you'll be seeing a lot of top 5/top 10 type of lists in the future on this blog), I'll list my top 5 greatest horror writers.

But wait, there's more!

I'll also include my top 5 favourite horror writers at no extra charge, because (and I've had many a heated discussion with mates over this) greatest and favourite are vastly different.

And to make things fun, I'll include my favourite work by each author.

Top 5 Greatest Horror Writers:

1/ Stephen King (The Shining)
2/ Edgar Allan Poe (The Tell-Tale Heart)
3/ Richard Matheson (I Am Legend)
4/ H.P. Lovecraft (Dagon)
5/ Shirley Jackson (The Lottery)

Top 5 Favourite Horror Writers:

1/ Richard Laymon (Savage)
2/ Stephen King (The Shining)
3/ Edgar Allan Poe (The Tell-Tale Heart)
4/ Jack Ketchum (The Girl Next Door)
5/ Edward Lee (The Bighead)

A Rocky Interruption

Here's the trailer for the upcoming sixth entry in the Rocky series, Rocky Balboa:

http://www.themoviebox.net/movies/2006/NOPQR/Rocky-Balboa/trailer.php

Am I happy that Stallone is putting on the gloves again as the iconic underdog? Yes and no. Yes because I grew up watching the Rocky films and I love them dearly and, like old friends you haven't seen for a while, I love the characters that populate the films (though, admittedly, most of them have gone from the series, leaving only Rocky, Paulie and Apollo's old trainer Duke - I believe even Adrian has died in this new film - the only characters that were in the original). No, because really, when is enough truly enough? Hasn't every storyline and drama been played out that can be played with these characters?

Still, I'll be there at the cinema cheering the old Italian Stallion one more time - how can I not?

The Genius of Charlie Chaplin

Believe it...or not:

A few months ago I had never seen a Chaplin film.

I of course knew OF him - his Little Tramp character is, arguably, one of the most instantly recognisable characters of all time (hell, even Hitler aped a part of Chaplin's look), with his bowler hat, funny little moustache, baggy pants, floppy shoes, and of course, his cane. But, aside from some clips here and there over the years, I had never actually sat down at watched any of his films.

That's all changed now.

I decided, in order to pass film 101, that I needed to rectify my Chaplin-less existence, so I splurged and bought this box set:
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0000AISJG/202-9818036-3598246?v=glance&n=283926

And I'm so glad I did - it was one of best purchases I've ever made.

A little while ago I wrote a small piece about Ray Garton (www.bitingdogpress.com/Bitingdogpub/garton/home.htm), which was included in a tribute book that was presented to the great writer at this years World Horror Convention. My piece was titled 'Ray Garton, You Know?" and was basically about how some writers you instantly know you're gonna love when you first read their work - as was the case with Ray Garton.

And was the case when I watched my first Chaplin film.
Now, my wife was almost as eager as I was to watch Chaplin's films, and so together, we sat down and started watching his feature films chronologically, starting with The Kid. I instantly knew I was going to love Chaplin. I knew I was in the hands of a master. I loved The Kid - it was as funny as it was moving (I dare anyone not to shed a tear at the sight of young Jackie Coogan crying, pleading for the Little Tramp to come and rescue him from being taken to the orphanage). But the incredible thing was, each film we watched was as good as, and sometimes better, than Chaplin's first feature.
Each film was in turns funny, poignant, even satirical.
And I learned something else - Chaplin's genius didn't just extend to his acting; he also wrote, directed and composed the music for every single one of his feature films (and a great deal of his shorts).

Just brilliant.

It's hard to pick a favourite - The Kid (1921) is wonderful, and contains, in my opinion, the best child performance in history; The Circus (1928) is arguably most out-and-out funniest; City Lights (1931) is incredibly moving, with possibly the best opening and closing scenes to any film I know of; The Great Dictator (1940) is a classic lampooning of the 3rd Reich.

But my two absolute favourites (I can't narrow it down to just one) have to be:

The Gold Rush (1925) & Modern Times (1936).

The first is a comedic masterpiece (and contains such classic scenes as the shoe eating, the dance of the bread rolls and the Tramp as a chicken), which also contains one of the most devastatingly sad scenes of any Chaplin film - when the Little Tramp is stood up on NYE.
The second is one of the best satires of our soul-destroying modern culture ever made. Containing such memorable moments as: the Tramp rolling through a cog-machine; being mistaken for a communist leader; and edging closer and closer to a dangerous fall in a department store. The film also contains the haunting song 'Smile' composed by Chaplin himself.

Chaplin's comedy is timeless - still as funny and even relevant as the day they were made. His films and comedic brilliance have influenced countless actors and directors (there was even a biopic made of Chaplin's life - called, strangley enough, Chaplin, which contained a masterful performance by Robert Downey Jr in the title role; even Johnny Depp chanelled the ghost of the great comedian [as well as Buster Keaton] in the quirky drama Benny & Joon).

If I had my way, all his films (including his many shorts; one - his WWI comedy Shoulder Arms (1918) - is among my favourite Chaplin films) would be mandatory viewing in every home (just like the entire Beatles catalogue should be mandatory listening).

I highly recommend you check out the films of Charles Chaplin.

Because genius never dies.

Cold Weather, Horror and Circles in Canberra

June 9-12 saw people from all over Australia (and a few from overseas) converge on our nation's capital for the third annual Conflux convention.
Now this is a mostly sci-fi/fantasy based convention.
I'm not a huge sci-fi/fantasy fan. Never have been. I started reading horror when I was a young lad, and that's where my passion lies. However, I decided to attend this convention for two reasons.
One was that it would give me a chance to take a gander around Canberra, a place I hadn't been since 1989 on a family holiday (and even then my most vivid memories were watching Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade at a very empty theatre, and throwing up one morning while staying at some budet motel).
So I thought it was high-time I checked out the sites of the political hub of Australia.
The second reason was that the first two books of the now defunct 'Dark Suspense' series from Lothian Books (www.lothian.com.au) - Carnies (www.martinlivings.com) and Prismatic (www.tabula-rasa.info/EdwinaGrey) - were to be launched. I thought it a great opportunity to not only meet some of the authors (the three Prismatic authors, David Carroll, Kyla Ward and Evan Paliatseas, as well as the author of The Darkness Within, Jason Nahrung - (www.jasonnahrung.com - whose book is scheduled to be released early next year) but to support local horror.
So, along with my lovely wife (who I had made a promise to spend a lot of time with sightseeing around Canberra), we drove up the Hume (where my latest novel The Mother is set) and, after an exhausting eight-hour drive, got into Canberra around six o'clock at night.
Now, driving to any unfamiliar place can be daunting, but as well as getting in when it was dark, Canberra is made up of a lot of circular roads, so this made arriving at Canberra a not very pleasant experience - we got lost, twice, but eventually made it to the convention hotel (Rydges Lakeside, located on the London Circuit - that's the outer circle, kiddies, not the inner, which can be very confusing and totally frustrating when you find yourself going 'round and 'round on the inner, and trying to get to the outer).
But, we made it to the hotel, already a little mad at out nation's capital.
Now, I'm not going to give a day-by-day, blow-by-blow run-down of my time at Canberra (which sould be renamed Coldberra - boom tish!). Not only would it bore you, the reader, but, quite frankly, I can't be bothered writing all that.
So, I'll just list some of the highlights:

*Visiting the war memorial. The memorial itself - the eternal flame and the walls commemorating the dead - is powerful and beautifully simple. The war museum is fascinating, but exhaustive. You'd need either all day (and even then you'd be buggered and your eyes strained from reading all the information pertaining to the exhibits) or do the museum in two lots. And that's no problem because, incredibly, it's free to look around the museum.

*The joint book launch of Carnies and Prismatic. It was disappointing that certain ex-Lothian people couldn't be there, but it was still a nice time. I got to meet my fellow Lothianites (minus Martin Livings, currently in London), and people I've spoken to via the web, such as Rob Hood (www.roberthood.net whose first words to me were 'You sick bastard'; hehe, thanks Rob, you're words meant a lot to me). It was nice to catch up with Marty Young - president of the Australian Horror Writers Association (www.australianhorror.com), and Bill Congreve, of MirrorDanse Books (www.tabula-rasa.info/MirrorDanse). And to meet Lee Battersby (congratulations!), and Angela Challis and Shane Jiraiya Cummings from Shadowed Realms (www.shadowedrealms.com.au/main.htm). So it was a good mix of horror people - a nice change, I must say, from the sci-fi/fantasy heavy vibe of the convention. My main disappointment - and this is my fault, being a fairly shy person - was that I didn't get to introduce myself to Ellen Datlow, who was kind enough to give her time to be at the launch.

*Hearing from David and Kyla that they saw Carnies and Prismatic at the local Dymocks in Canberra.

*Showing Michelle, on the way home, Lake Mokoan, which plays an important part in The Mother. It was great for me, also, seeing the lake on a clear day. Last time I saw it, it was surrounded by fog, so I got to see the lake in all its glory, which, though not quite as creepy, was still a horrible/wonderful sight.


And that's pretty much it. I didn't spend a lot of time at the convention. And besides, there wasn't the party atmosphere of a World Horror Convetion. True, I did feel a little out of place at a sci-fi/fantasy con, and because a lot of the panels/events happened at the National Museum of Australia, rather than the hotel, you couldn't just head down to the bar and start chatting to a fellow con-attendee.
But it was still worthwhile, and at least I learned one important thing - Canberra's a nice place to visit, but I'd never want to live there.

Second time around

Well my original blog, associated with my website host, was hacked into, or at least something strange happened to it to make it go all screwy, so I decided to hop on over to one of the popular blog spots, so here I am (I hope it's a cool spot, not one of those places that only attracts nerds, or where the boys are all on one side and the girls giggling on the other).
Anyway, I'll be posting something incredibly insightful and entertaining soon - I just wanted to say hi and see if I can actually get this new blog working (I wasn't blessed with a computer brain). So until then...